How the Rat Stole Christmas
by FairyTales And Pixie Dust
Summary: A small re-telling of the Dr. Suess tale only with a Great Mouse Detective twist! Flames are unacceptable and will be fed to Felicia.


**Bonjour fans. It is I, Tales, with a new story that will have you speaking in rhyme for all eternity. This is actually a contest entry over at dA so I hope you all get a kick out of it. I don't own any of the poetic material other then the few changes to the words, nor do I own Ratigan or anyone else in the GMD movie. Enjoy! (Oh, and please try to picture Vincent Price narrating this. Except for the Cindy Lou Who part.)**

Every mouse down in Mousedom liked Christmas a lot, but the Rat who lived just north of Mousedom did NOT. The Rat HATED Christmas, the WHOLE Christmas season. Please don't ask why, no one quite knows the reason. It could be perhaps that his shoes were too tight. Maybe his head wasn't screwed on just right. But I think that the most likely reason of all may have been that his heart was two sizes too small. But whatever the reason, he really wasn't nice and he stood there on Christmas Eve hating the mice. Staring down from his den with a sour rat-like frown at the warm lighted windows below in their town. For he knew every mouse down in Mousedom beneath was busy now hanging their Christmas Eve wreath.

"And they're hanging their stockings," he snarled with a sneer. "Tomorrow is Christmas. It's practically here!" Then he growled, with his sharp claws nervously drumming. "I must find a way to keep Christmas from coming! For tomorrow I know, all the mouse girls and boys will wake bright and early and rush for their toys! And then, oh the noise! Oh, the noise, noise, noise! That's one thing I hate! All the noise, noise, noise, NOISE! Then the mice young and old will sit down to a feast! And they'll feast! And they'll feast! And they'll feast, feast, feast, FEAST! They would feast on cheese pudding! And rare mouse roast beef! Oh, that is something that I can't stand in the least! And THEN, THEN they'll do something I HATE most of all! Every mouse down in Mousedom, the tall and the small will stand close together, with Christmas bells ringing. They'll stand paw in paw and those mice will start SINGING. And they'll sing! And they'll sing! And they'll sing, sing, sing, SING!"

And the more the Rat thought of the Mouse-Christmas-Sing, the more the Rat thought, 'I must stop this whole thing! Why, for twenty three years I've put up with it now! I MUST stop Christmas from coming! But HOW?"

Then he got an idea.

An awful idea.

The Rat got a wonderful AWFUL idea!

"I know just what to do," the Rat laughed in his throat. And he made a quick Santa Claus hat and a coat. And he chuckled and clucked, "What a great, nasty trick! With this coat and this hat, I'll look just like Saint Nick! Now, all I need is a reindeer!" The Rat looked around, but since reindeer are scarce, there were none to be found. Did that stop the old rat? "Hah!" The Rat said "If I can't find a reindeer, I'll make one instead!" So he called for his cat then he took some red thread and he tied a big horn on top of her head.

Then he loaded some bags and some old empty sacks on a ramshackle sleigh and he hitched up the cat. Then the Rat said, "Giddap," and the sleigh started down toward the homes where the mice lay a-snooze in their town. All their windows were dark, quiet snow filled the air. All the mice were all dreaming sweet dreams without care when he came to the first little house on the square.

"This is stop number one," the old Ratty Clause hissed, and he climbed to the roof with empty bags in his fist. Then he slid down the chimney, a rather tight pack but if Santa could do it, then so could the Rat! He got stuck only once for a moment or two, then he stuck his head out of the fireplace flue where little mouse stockings all hung in a row.

"These stockings," he grinned, "are the first things to go!" Then he slithered and slunk with a smile most unpleasant. And around the whole room, he took every present. Pop guns, and bicycles, roller skates, drums! Checkerboards, tricycles, popcorn, and plums! Then he stuffed them in backs and the Rat very nimbly stuffed all the bags, one by one, right up the chimney.

Then he slunk to the ice box. He took the whole feast! He took the cheese pudding! He took the roast beef! He cleaned out that ice box as quick as a flash. Why, that old Rat even took the last can of Mouse-hash. Then he stuffed all the food up the chimney with glee.

"And now," grinned the Rat. "I shall stuff up the tree!" So, the Rat grabbed the tree and he started to shove when he heard a small sound like the coo of a dove. He turned around fast and saw to his surprise, little Livvy Flaversham who was no more than five. The Rat had been caught by this tiny mouse daughter who'd got out of bed for a cup of cold water. She stared at the Rat and said,

"Santa Clause, why? Why are you taking our Christmas tree? Why?"

But you know, that old Rat was so smart and so slick, that he thought up a lie and he thought it up quick.

"Why, my sweet little tot," the fake Santa Clause lied. "There's a light on this tree that won't light on one side. So, I'm taking it up to my workshop, my dear. I'll fix it up there, and then I'll bring it back here."

And his fib fooled the child, then he patted her head, got her a drink, and sent her to bed. And when little Miss Flaversham was in bed with her cup, he went to the chimney and stuffed the tree up. And he went up the chimney himself, the old liar and the last thing he took was the log for their fire. On their walls he left nothing but hooks and some wire. And the one speck of food that he left in the house was a crumb that was even too small for a louse. Then he did the same thing to the other mouse houses, leaving crumbs much too small for the other mouse 's louses.

It was a quarter past dawn, all the mice still a-bed, all the mice still a-snooze when he packed up his sled. Packed it up with their presents, the ribbons, and wrappings! The tags, and the tinsel, the trimmings, and trappings! Ten thousand feet up, up the side of Mount Grumpet, he rode with his load to the tip-top to dump it!

"Too bad for the mice," he was fiendishly humming. "They're just finding out that no Christmas is coming! They're just waking up, and I know just what they'll do! Their mouths will hang open a minute or two, the mice down in Mousedom will all cry, Boo-hoo! That's a noise," said the Rat. "That I simply MUST hear!" So he paused, and the Rat put a paw to his ear. And he did hear a sound rising over the snow. It started in low...then it started to grow!

But...this sound wasn't sad!

Why, this sound sounded...glad!

He stared down at Mousedom, and the Rat rubbed at his eyes! And he shook, what he saw was a shocking surprise! Every mouse down in Mousedom, the tall and the small was singing. Without any presents at all.

He hadn't stopped Christmas from coming, it came. Somehow or other, it came just the same. And the Rat with his hind feet ice cold in the snow stood puzzling and puzzling:

"How could it be so!? It came without ribbons! It came without tags! It came without packages, boxes, or bags!" He puzzled and puzzled, until his puzzler was sore. Then the Rat thought of something, he hadn't before! "Maybe Christmas," he thought "doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit...more."

And what happened then, well in Mousedom they say that the Rat's small heart grew three sizes that day! And the moment that his heart didn't feel quite so tight, he zoomed with his load through the bright morning light! And he brought back the toys, and the food for the feast. Then he, he himself, the Rat carved the roast beef.

_Welcome Christmas, bring your cheer_

_Cheer to all things far and near_

_Christmas Day is in our grasp_

_So long as we have hands to clasp_

_Christmas Day will always be_

_Just as long as we have we_

_Welcome Christmas while we stand heart to heart and hand in hand._

**Merry Christmas! And please leave a review on the way out! :D**


End file.
